Johnson voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. The bill was passed in the Senate by a 89/8 vote on January 1, 2013.<ref>[http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=112&session=2&vote=00251 ''U.S. Senate'' "Roll Call Vote on the Fiscal Cliff" Accessed January 4, 2013.]</ref>

Johnson voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. The bill was passed in the Senate by a 89/8 vote on January 1, 2013.<ref>[http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=112&session=2&vote=00251 ''U.S. Senate'' "Roll Call Vote on the Fiscal Cliff" Accessed January 4, 2013.]</ref>

Ron Johnson (b. April 8, 1955, in Mankato, Minnesota) is a Republican member of the U.S. Senate from the state of Wisconsin. Johnson was first elected to the Senate in 2010.

Johnson was part of the wave of tea-party Republicans elected in the 2010 midterm elections.[1]

Based on analysis of multiple outside rankings, Johnson is one of the most reliable Republican votes, meaning he can be considered a safe vote for the Republican Party in Congress.

Biography

After earning his bachelor's from the University of Minnesota, Johnson worked as an accountant for a couple years before starting a plastic sheeting business with his brother-in-law.[1] He worked in the business until becoming a U.S. senator.

Fiscal Cliff

Johnson voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. The bill was passed in the Senate by a 89/8 vote on January 1, 2013.[8]

Syria

Johnson blasted Obama saying he "backed America into a corner" and failed to lead on the situation in Syria in September 2013. Johnson said, "I am hoping that through these hearings, through this discussion with the American people, the president can make a strong case and that we can get America behind him and behind the actions that, quite honestly, nobody wants to take." He added, "He dithered, he didn’t act decisively right off the bat, so based on, with all the leaks, with all the discussion going on, yeah I didn’t see any reason for real quick action. He’ll be in a far stronger position if he makes the case and convinces the American public and Congress.”[9]

After voting no on the Senate resolution, Johnson said, ""I'm highly concerned that the administration's action will be ineffective. And I think ineffective action would be actually worse than no action whatsoever. I really did not get any kind of comfort level that this administration has adequately planned for the reprecussions" of a strike against Syria. They may be able to provide me with that comfort over the next couple of days before we take the final vote. But right now I simply did not have the information or the answers to the questions I needed to even allow me to consider voting yes on this resolution."[10]

Drones filibuster

On March 6, 2013, Senator Rand Paul (R) led a 13-hour filibuster of President Obama's CIA Director nominee, John Brennan. Paul started the filibuster in order to highlight his concerns about the administration's drone policies. In particular, Paul said he was concerned about whether a drone could be used to kill an American citizen within the United States border without any due process involved. Paul and other civil liberties activists were critical of President Obama for not offering a clear response to the question. A total of 14 senators joined Paul in the filibuster -- 13 Republicans and one Democrat.[11][12][13]

Johnson was one of the 13 Republican senators who joined Paul in his filibuster.[14][15]

According to the website Breitbart, 30 Republican senators did not support the filibuster.[16][17]

The day after the filibuster, Attorney General Eric Holder sent a letter to Paul, responding to the filibuster. Holder wrote, "Does the president have the authority to use a weaponized drone to kill an American not engaged in combat on U.S. soil? The answer to that is no."[18]

August 2013 ad about Johnson

League of Conservation Voters

The League of Conservation Voters spent $2 million on ads against Johnson and other climate change deniers in August of 2013. According to the LCV president, Gene Karpinski, "The American people are tired of Washington politicians ignoring basic scientific facts and standing in the way of action on climate change. This ad campaign shows that members of Congress won’t be able to sweep their extreme, anti-science voting records under the rug." Johnson responded to the ads saying, "The League of Conservation voters is not an organization with a balanced approach to a cleaner environment. "They are an extreme left group on an environmental jihad."

Elections

Full history

To view the full congressional electoral history for Ron Johnson, click [show] to expand the section.

2010

On November 2, 2010, Ron Johnson won election to the U.S. Senate. He defeated incumbent Russ Feingold (D), Rob Taylor (Constitution Party of Wisconsin), Ernest J. Pagels, Jr. (Write-in Republican) and Michael D. LaForest (Write-in Independent) in the general election.[19]

U.S. Senate, Wisconsin, 2010

Party

Candidate

Vote %

Votes

Republican

Ron Johnson

51.9%

1,125,999

Democratic

Russell D. Feingold Incumbent

47%

1,020,958

Constitution

Rob Taylor

1.1%

23,473

Write-in

Ernest J. Pagels, Jr.

0%

134

Write-in

Michael D. LaForest

0%

129

None

Scattering

0%

638

Total Votes

2,171,331

Campaign donors

Comprehensive donor information for Johnson is available dating back to 2010. Based on available campaign finance records, Johnson raised a total of $15,235,898 during that time period. This information was last updated on April 25, 2013.[20]

Ron Johnson (Wisconsin)'s Campaign Contribution History

Year

Office

Result

Contributions

2010

U.S. Senate (Wisconsin)

$15,235,898

Grand Total Raised

$15,235,898

Breakdown of the source of Johnson's campaign funds before the 2010 election.

Johnson won election to the U.S. Senate in 2010. During that election cycle, Johnson's campaign committee raised a total of $15,235,898 and spent $15,043,252.[21]

Lifetime voting record

According to the website GovTrack, Johnson missed 3 of 580 roll call votes from January 2011 to April 2013. This amounts to .5%, which is better than the median of 1.7% among current senators as of April 2013.[24]

Congressional staff salaries

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Johnson paid his congressional staff a total of $1,427,919 in 2011. He ranks fourth on the list of the lowest paid Republican senatorial staff salaries and ranks fourth overall of the lowest paid senatorial staff salaries in 2011. Overall, Wisconsin ranks 24th in average salary for senatorial staff. The average U.S. Senate congressional staff was paid $2,529,141.70 in fiscal year 2011.[25]

Net worth

2011

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org, Johnson's net worth as of 2011 was estimated between $8,767,016 and $38,743,000. That averages to $23,755,008, which is higher than the average net worth of Republican senators in 2011 of $6,358,668. His average net worth increased by 3.51% from 2010.[26]

2010

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org, Johnson's networth as of 2010 was estimated between $8,181,014 and $37,718,000. That averages to $22,949,507. The average net worth of Republican senators in 2010 was $7,054,258.[27]

National Journal vote ratings

2012

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of Congress voted in the previous year. Johnson was 1 of 2 members who ranked 22nd in the conservative rankings in 2012.[28]